Do remember that Canon is not your only lens option. .... To me it's a no-brainer but then, I don't feel wedded to Canon lenses.

AdamJ, you make a good point. Like I said, the competition - esp for lenses, is loving it. In my experience however, there is a significant build quality difference between Canon lenses and all the other value driven alternatives. For most shooters, the alternatives are more than adequate. However, for those of us who shoot outdoors and shoot a LOT on a steady basis, the build quality of Canon can't be beat. I can wear out a Tamron in a year while a similar Canon lens will not even blink, it just keeps on working without hesitation.

With their recently announced strategy, Sigma is undergoing a sea-change from a price-driven proposition to a quality-driven proposition. I believe this is at least partly a response to the gap in the market that Canon's pricing is opening up. Sigma can develop premium products now because they know they can pitch them at the premium-but-not-inflated price level that Canon has vacated.

I agree that this is somewhat worrying. But for starters, EU and GBP countries are on a VAT system, which means that generally their products are quotes INclusive of sales taxes, which are generally higher than in the US. After stripping this out it would make more sense to compare, however other business costs, import duties and volumes then start to play a role.

You know what, I may just abandon my 24-105 for this lens. Of course, I'll have to try it before I buy it, and I won't be buying it right away. I'll wait for now. The high price means that there's no rush.

Hey! EF 35mm f/2 IS comes with lens hood! WOW! At leas we know now where this price comes from...

On what are you basing that statement? If it's the B&H 'what's in the box' list, I'd reserve judgement - I think that's an error. If you look at 'more images' you'll see the picture of the hood is the EW-83L, the hood for the 24-70/4L IS. A hood with an 83mm diameter at the bayonet mount isn't going fit on a lens with a specified maximum diameter of 77.9mm. Most likely, someone setting up the B&H webpage did the 24-70/4L IS first, then just copied and pasted.

Do remember that Canon is not your only lens option. .... To me it's a no-brainer but then, I don't feel wedded to Canon lenses.

AdamJ, you make a good point. Like I said, the competition - esp for lenses, is loving it.

With their recently announced strategy, Sigma is undergoing a sea-change from a price-driven proposition to a quality-driven proposition. I believe this is at least partly a response to the gap in the market that Canon's pricing is opening up. Sigma can develop premium products now because they know they can pitch them at the premium-but-not-inflated price level that Canon has vacated.

This is a very interesting observation Adam. Canon is creating a price gap vacuum that will encourage a higher quality alternative to fill it at a previously acceptable price point (but probably still slightly less). And if the alternative is good and receives rave reviews, it will succeed. The fickle enthusiasts will flock in droves. Hell, I might even be one of them. If I can have a quality lens for half the price of the Canon L, I can afford to even replace it if I wear it out and still come out ahead. Time will tell!!

Gothmoth

With their recently announced strategy, Sigma is undergoing a sea-change from a price-driven proposition to a quality-driven proposition. I believe this is at least partly a response to the gap in the market that Canon's pricing is opening up. Sigma can develop premium products now because they know they can pitch them at the premium-but-not-inflated price level that Canon has vacated.

i hope so!

i really want the new sigma 35mm f1.4 to be a winner.can´t wait to test it.

Do remember that Canon is not your only lens option. .... To me it's a no-brainer but then, I don't feel wedded to Canon lenses.

AdamJ, you make a good point. Like I said, the competition - esp for lenses, is loving it.

With their recently announced strategy, Sigma is undergoing a sea-change from a price-driven proposition to a quality-driven proposition. I believe this is at least partly a response to the gap in the market that Canon's pricing is opening up. Sigma can develop premium products now because they know they can pitch them at the premium-but-not-inflated price level that Canon has vacated.

This is a very interesting observation Adam. Canon is creating a price gap vacuum that will encourage a higher quality alternative to fill it at a previously acceptable price point (but probably still slightly less). And if the alternative is good and receives rave reviews, it will succeed. The fickle enthusiasts will flock in droves. Hell, I might even be one of them. If I can have a quality lens for half the price of the Canon L, I can afford to even replace it if I wear it out and still come out ahead. Time will tell!!

Don't be shy about Sigma.... I have the 50mm 1.4 and the thing takes fabulous pictures. They are sharp, and the bokeh is super creamy! Additionally, it's built like a tank and has a very professional look and feel. I would highly recommend this lens, especially if you have a camera with AFMA(for obvious reasons.)

I'm not overly happy with my Sigma 24-70 IF EX DG APO because it takes a maximum micro adjustment of +20 to get it in focus (and it is still slightly out, if I could adjust it to +21 it would be perfect). Yet if Sigma starts releasing weather sealed excellent lenses at prices that match the previous generation of Canon L glass then I'll be buying their products instead of this new batch of Canon lenses. I need a few more lenses to fill out what I want to do professionally, so I'm in the market with a reason to buy.

In all seriousness, a lot of people here treat MSRP like it's built in stone. Anyone that can't get a 5DmkIII for around $2900 with a light amount of work/patience isn't trying very hard, so let's stop pretending like these aren't going to be bundled/adjusted.

2900 euro.... and is it worth 600 euro more then the D800? ..... imho not.

850 euro (you know what that is in dollar?) for a 35mm f2.... pffhhh.and that´s a preorder price i saw.

sigma here i come!!

Canon has great marketing, they will sell more third party lenses this year!